Of quirks and beliefs: Bollywood and its idiosyncracies

By Gaurav Dubey |Posted 04-Apr-2014

We dig out some funny, bizarre and unbelievable ideas that stars hold close to their hearts....

Most of us hold on to some superstition and Bollywood is no exception. If anything, stardom comes with its own fears and insecurities, leaving celebs at the mercy of lucky charms and superstitious beliefs.

Tinseltown residents visiting temples and dargahs to seek blessings of the divine for their films’ success are a common phenomenon now, as is changing the spelling of one’s name. hitlist shares some interesting quirks and superstitions practised by famous stars..

Amitabh BachchanQuirk/superstition: Big B wears two watches on the same wrist and carries three cell phones. What’s more, he doesn’t watch cricket matches live. The star believes that doing so leads to the team’s loss.

Shah Rukh KhanQuirk/superstition: The actor clearly believes in the power of the number 555. All his vehicles bear the number 555 on their license plates.

Sanjay DuttQuirk/superstition: Dutt is an ardent follower of numerology. He has the digits 4545 on the number plates of all his cars since he considers the number 9 (4 +5=9) lucky.

Ajay DevgnQuirk/superstition: He wasn’t superstitious earlier, but he dropped the letter ‘A’ from his last name, Devgan. In 2008, a numerologist had advised his mother that changing the spelling of her son’s name would bring about a positive change in his career.

Ranbir KapoorQuirk/superstition: Ranbir Kapoor considers mother Neetu Kapoor as his lucky charm. Perhaps this is why number plates of his cars bear the number 8, which also happens to be Neetu’s birth date.

Salman KhanQuirk/superstition: Khan wears a turquoise bracelet on his right arm. The actor believes that the bracelet protects him from the evil eye. He even insists on flaunting it on-screen.

Sohail KhanQuirk/superstition: The actor is always seen wearing chappals at events. They may be comfortable — but to wear them all the time, without fail — indicates that he harbours a strong liking for chappals.

Riteish DeshmukhQuirk/superstition: The actor’s first name was spelt as Ritesh, but he then added an ‘I’ to his first name as per his numerologist’s instructions. Riteish Deshmukh has now had a decent stint at the box office and he has recently turned producer.

Abhishek BachchanQuirk/superstition: Abhishek is a big sports fan, and is also superstitious when it comes to cricket and football. The actor doesn’t like to move about while watching a game; so much so that he prefers sitting in one position lest his movements affect the outcome of the match! Cute.

Arjun KapoorQuirk/superstition: Arjun, who lost around 50 kgs while grooming himself for a career in Bollywood, doesn’t eat outside food. Only home cooked food will do for this actor.

Shilpa ShettyQuirk/superstition: Shilpa, who co-owns the IPL team Rajasthan Royals, has been wearing two watches together at all RR games. In addition to this, every time her team is at the crease, she makes it a point to not cross her legs as she believes it will bring her team a spot of bad luck.

Rani MukerjiQuirk/superstition: She thinks that 3 is her lucky number and has shifted the release of many of her films to accommodate this belief. She also moved homes because she reportedly believed that her seaside residence in Juhu was jinxed. She is said to have moved back to her old home in a bid to reverse the ill fortune.

Saif Ali Khan and Kareena KapoorQuirk/superstition: Star couple, Kareena Kapoor and Saif Ali Khan, are known to love the numbers 3 and 7 respectively. This is because Kareena’s birth date (21) adds up to the number 3, while Khan’s birth date (17) adds up to the number 7. Not surprisingly, all their cars bear these respective numbers.

Vidya BalanQuirk/superstition: The actress is apparently very particular about using a certain Pakistani brand of kohl for her eyes. It is apparently called Hashmi, and Balan is said to not step out of her home without wearing it.

Shahid KapoorQuirk/superstition: The actor doesn’t like getting photographed while eating. In fact, Kapoor has instructed his team to ensure that this doesn’t happen.